How To Find The Silver Lining

Things can definitely get tricky sometimes. I’ve definitely been through it before, and I know I’m going through a tricky patch again – where something felt like it was going alright but then a spanner is thrown in the works and everything suddenly spirals out of control. We’ve all been there. One thing I’ve learnt is that there are ways to keep your mood from dropping too low when things get messy, there’s always a silver lining if you’d just take a moment to find it. When a situation gets tough for me, there are a few steps I like to take to prevent too much anxiety kicking in, and to help me focus on what’s important; so in today’s blog post, I’m sharing them, just in case you need to find the silver lining too.

1. Spend some time with nature.

I have often been guilty of feeling so down that I just don’t want to go outside and face the world. Everything becomes too much effort and all I want to do is curl up and hide under the sheets. Getting over this feeling can be hard but I’m sure you’ve heard how healing getting dressed and getting outside can be. Taking a walk for some fresh air, stopping by a coffee shop or a park can be extremely uplifting and it can help you regain perspective when nothing seems to be going right.

2. Ask yourself some questions.

What am I learning/have I learnt from this situation? What good things have been a result of this? How can this make me stronger and better than before? Asking yourself these sorts of questions forces you to look for the silver in the clouds. I always like writing things down, there’s a sense of concreteness which I experience from the act of writing with pen to paper. If it helps you, write down the questions which force you to search for the positives in a bad situation, and write down your answers too – that way you can constantly reflect on the good.

3. Practise gratitude.

This includes self-gratitude. Once you appreciate yourself, you can start appreciating the good in every situation, and it becomes much easier to do it. When you realise your potential and you’re working towards a bigger goal, understanding the process of how you’re going to get there becomes the biggest priority and suddenly you’ll find that you’re not sweating the small stuff. I wrote a post on quotes for self motivation which I’ll link here. I like looking these up on Pinterest when I’m not feeling so great for a bit of a pick-me-up.

4. Make a game plan.

Bad situations come and they throw us off balance. They teach us something new and they make us stronger people. But the best way to move on from them is to stand up, dust down and refocus on how you’re going to ultimately reach your end goal. Yes, there’s been a bump in the road – maybe two or three, but ultimately you’re going to get to where you want too. It’s just that your journey there might be a little longer than you first anticipated, that’s all.

5. Remember that you’re in charge.

Everything that you do is up to you and that can be both intimidating and liberating. Finding the silver lining is all about realising the latter, and being able to enjoy it. Sometimes things won’t go as smoothly as you want them to, sometimes stuff gets tricky, but ultimately it’s up to you. If you want something that badly, you can keep working for it until you get there because (as cliche as it sounds), you’re the one in charge of your own destiny.

What’s your favourite way to look for the positive in a bad situation?